From the Editor: Send us your letters to the editor

A number of conservatives are bombing my inbox and voicemail with comments about The Record since I became editor a bit over two months ago.

Here are two prevalent themes:

The Record has become more liberal under my leadership.

Fewer letters to the editor are being printed because they are pro-Trump.

Let me begin with the second point.

I do handle letters to the editor. Here are a few salient points about them:

1. Letters are printed at our discretion and submission does not guarantee publication. We do look for a variety of voices, including political affiliation, age, even location. The prevalence of letters published are from readers in the area. This avoids us being part of a letter-writing campaign. I recently rejected a letter from someone on the east coast with no apparent local connection.

2. Fewer letters are being published because we are receiving fewer letters. The truth is that a small number of people are prolific writers and we could run letters from them fairly often, some weekly and at times when they are on a roll daily. We try to avoid that.

3. Unless you work here and have access to our letters file, you cannot possibly know what political view the letters are taking. So why assume that they are pro- or anti-Trump?

4. I do not agree with every story that is published in The Record or on Recordnet.com. As I have said time and again, and will continue to say: partisanship is irrelevant as long as a letter makes salient and respectful points. I regularly encounter a number of people who I disagree with politically. I am more than willing to hear their point of view as long as they do it in a respectful manner. That includes the person I spoke with last week who began swearing. I advised him that if he did not stop, our conversation would end. His next move was to swear again to which I said: Oh well, goodbye. And that conversation was over.

Simply stated, I do not have to agree with a letter to publish it. I actually enjoy reading various points of view to try and understand how people see things.

5. All letters must include contact information — i.e. name, address phone number, email address. This helps ensure that a letter is from a real person and to get answers to questions.

6. And try to limit yourself to 250 words.

Now for that first point, last.

I don’t understand how someone would assume that in such a short period that The Record has suddenly become a far-left publication.

It wasn’t as if a John Birch member was directing this place during my first 12 years here as managing editor and a member of The Record’s Editorial Board.

Maybe someone arrives at that conclusion for the same reason that some call Miami Herald columnist Leonard Pitts Jr. a racist because he writes about race.

As I tell people: If I were that organized or conniving to manipulate something to such a minute degree, I would focus on enlarging my bank account.

I will continue to make my points. And I will continue to do my job as best I can.

Contact Editor Donald W. Blount at (209) 546-8251 or dblount@recordnet.com. Follow him at recordnet.com/editorblog and on Twitter @donblount.

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